Franklin County and the Greenfield, Massachusetts community addresses the opioid crisis with an innovative approach to treatment. The Franklin County Jail is one of the only corrections facilities in the country offering suboxone to its clients.

RSAT Jail Program Tour

What Inmates Tell us About RSAT

RSAT-TTA is joining with the National Criminal Justice Association and International Community Corrections Association for a National Conference!

It will be held from September 15 at 4pm through September 18 at noon. The last morning will be reserved solely for RSAT grantees/attendees. CLICK HERE for additional information and to complete the RSAT Workshop attendee form.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

HIV & Viral Hepatitis Update

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is seeking applications for state, local, and tribal governments to implement outcomes-based contracts with reentry and permanent supportive housing service providers to improve recidivism, housing and related outcomes for formerly incarcerated people. This program furthers the Department’s mission by reducing recidivism and building more effective service delivery systems that pay for outcomes.

This collection of articles by the National Association of Drug Court Professionals published in the Journal for Advancing Justice includes descriptions of model prison MAT programs in NJ, RI, MA & KY.

The jail has a separate pod for all offenders between the ages of 18-24. In it, trained correctional officers and staff have created a program tailored to the positive development of young men with the assistance of the VERA Institute of Justice. The Sheriff admits many thought he was crazy to put in one pod the offenders responsible for most of the disciplinary problems in the jail, including gang rivalries. However, as this report indicates, the results have been terrific on every level.

This is SAMHSA’s version of the earlier work released by the National Sheriffs’ Association and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care. It has a succinct review of the research and additional examples of MAT programs in criminal justice settings including jails and prisons. The latter includes New Jersey and Philadelphia’s large buprenorphine induction prison and jail programs.

New Massachusetts study found in over 2,000 opioid related overdoses only 17% only ingested opioids. Most mixed with cocaine and methamphetamines. Many not addicted to opioids, thought they were ingesting cocaine only.

Filter obtained the attached list of US prices for different forms of buprenorphine formulations and brands. The list was provided by Elsevier, a global information and analytics company. If you program has not checked prices recently, you may be paying too much for your buprenorphine medications for both withdrawal management or medication-assisted treatment.

The opioid epidemic is a devastating public health crisis. Emerging research suggests that the narrative of the current crisis is not so simple – that in fact there are multiple co-occurring and distinct epidemics – characterized by different types of opioids as well as geographical footprints. Mortality rates are doubling every two years in some states. This articles includes maps that include discussion of Life Expectancy Lost (LEL) due to increased opioid-related deaths and future state responses.

Opioid overdose deaths climbed fastest in the District of Columbia, more than tripling every year since 2013. Eight states -- Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, and Ohio -- had opioid-related mortality rates that at least doubled every 3 years. Two states -- Florida and Pennsylvania -- had opioid-related mortality rates that at least doubled every 2 years. The increase in mortality rates in the east seemed driven primarily by synthetic opioids, which followed a distinctive geographic pattern across the country. Synthetic opioid deaths now outnumber heroin deaths, suggesting that drugs like fentanyl have contaminated the production process of street drugs like cocaine and methamphetamines and is no longer limited to heroin.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared a mobile medical application (app) to help increase treatment retention in an outpatient program for individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD). The reSET-O app is a prescription cognitive behavioral therapy intended to be used in addition to outpatient treatment under the care of a health care professional, in conjunction with treatment that includes buprenorphine and contingency management. Although reSET-O did not reduce positive drug screens, it did significantly increase treatment retention. Using internet-based or mobile apps in conjunction with treatment for substance use disorders is not a new idea. There are many studies going back over 10 years that have shown promising outcomes in using technology based cognitive-behavioral treatment sessions and/or community reinforcement approach to enhance as well as reduce traditional counselor based treatment sessions. Evidence-based interventions will continue to be designed to improve executive function and be delivered through the use of mobile apps and, coupled with their high program consistency and participant enjoyment, appear to be a logical choice for repairing cognitive dysfunction.

Information on Effective Cognitive Behavioral Approaches

The OJJDP Model Program Guide rates at least 10 CBT programs as effective or promising: http://www.ojjdp.gov/mpg/
Trauma-Focused CBT is included, which helps children & parents overcome traumatic life events such as child sexual or physical abuse.

We are interested in training RSAT participants to become Peer Support Specialists. Is there paid employment for them when they leave our prison?

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